As Internet usage continues to grow, more and more customers are accessing communications services via a mobile device, e.g., a cell phone, a smart phone, a tablet, etc. For example, a customer may receive multimedia content via his/her cell phone. The cell phone transmits and receives voice and data packets to and from the service provider's network via a base station and an access network.
When a customer accesses a service via a wireless network, the customer is provided with the service via one or more network elements, with each network element being dedicated to a functional role. For example, a particular network element may function as a serving gateway. Another particular network element may function as a mobility management entity, etc. These network elements are large scale network elements. As such, the protocols supported by the network elements are complex and costly. When the customer roams to a new location, the functionalities accessed by the customer may not be supported at the new location. As such, the service provider may route each session request back to the home location for processing.